The NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Tournament bracket has officially dropped.

The ACC holds four of the top five spots with No. 1 UNC, No. 3 Syracuse, No. 4 Boston College and No. 5 Notre Dame. Meanwhile, the Big Ten has four qualifiers in No. 2 Northwestern, Johns Hopkins, Maryland and Rutgers.

James Madison, the 2018 champions, is set to face off against Johns Hopkins in the first round for a shot to play against No. 1 UNC. The full bracket can be found here. 

With the first round starting May 14, Just Women’s Sports is here with some of the storylines to watch in this year’s tournament. 

Three teams went unbeaten in the regular season; two of them could face off in the second round

UNC (18-0), Northwestern (13-0) and Stanford (11-0) all remain perfect heading into NCAA tournament play.

Northwestern boasts the nation’s highest scoring offense (20.62 GPG) behind Tewaaraton finalists Izzy Scane and Lauren Gilbert. Scane, who was recently named Big Ten Attacker of the Year and the Big Ten Tournament MVP, has been unreal offensively for the Wildcats, scoring 81 goals in 13 games. Gilbert has held some firepower of her own, scoring 56 goals in as many games. Meanwhile, UNC holds the nation’s highest scoring defense (5.94 GPG) led by senior and Tewaaraton finalist Emma Trenchard. Stanford is also high-powered offensively, ranking fifth in the country with an average of 16.73 goals per game. 

Both UNC and Northwestern received first-round byes and home-field advantage after receiving the No. 1 and No. 2 rankings respectively. Stanford, meanwhile, is set to face off against Denver in the first round of the tournament in the Evanston “pod.” The winner of that matchup will then meet Northwestern in the second round, meaning that if Stanford beats the Pioneers it will be a showdown between two of the three remaining unbeaten teams. The last time Stanford and Northwestern met, during the COVID shortened season in 2020, the Wildcats beat the Cardinal 25-18. 

However, the Cardinals might not get past the Pioneers so easily as Denver enters the tournament having lost only one game this season (early on against Colorado) and are the Big East Tournament Champions. Regardless, the winning team will advance to face Northwestern, who is seeking their eighth national championship and first since 2012.

Maryland enters the NCAA tournament unranked

Defending national champion Maryland is no stranger to the NCAA women’s lacrosse tournament. This year will mark their 31st consecutive appearance, making it the longest streak in the nation. Head coach Cathy Reese has led the Terrapins to five national titles since she took over in 2007 with the last coming in 2019. No matter what, the Terrapins are always in the national title conversation having won 15 titles, the most of any women’s lacrosse program. 

This season has not been an easy one, as they enter the tournament with a 7-5 conference record. But the Terrapins have been showing power in spurts, led by Tewaaraton finalist and Big Ten Defender of the Year Lizzie Colson. Following a loss in their season opener to Johns Hopkins, they went on a five-game win streak that was snuffed by Northwestern. They went 2-2 in their final regular season matches before making it all the way to the Big Ten Championship final, where they were defeated once again by the second-ranked Wildcats. While Maryland enters this year’s NCAA Tournament in unfamiliar territory, they could very well make some noise in the early rounds. 

UNC Lacrosse, not to be outdone by field hockey, is looking for their third title

North Carolina’s women’s teams have been having an unreal year. While UNC Field Hockey was busy taking care of business and winning their third-straight title, their soccer team has a shot at advancing to the College Cup Final. 

Meanwhile, their lacrosse team has been dominant all season while riding a 21-game win streak. The Tar Heels are led by a nation-high four Tewaaraton Award finalists in Katie Hoeg, Taylor Moreno, Emma Trenchard and Jamie Ortega. Ortega has led the Tar Heels’ offense, having scored 73 goals in 17 games, winning her ACC Attacker of the Year, while Hoeg has made an impact with her assists, having 61 in 18 games for the Heels. 

The Tar Heels enter the tournament having won their fifth straight ACC tournament, defeating No. 3 Syracuse 9-4. They’ve dominated all season, outscoring their opponents 290-90, and are now seeking their third national title (and first since 2016). Goalkeeper and ACC Defender of the Year Taylor Moreno has only allowed double-digit goals against twice, versus No. 5 Notre Dame and No. 7 Duke. Having earned a first-round bye, they’ll take on the winner of James Madison vs. Johns Hopkins in the second round in Chapel Hill.

Other teams to watch out for:

• Boston College (13-3) has been the runner-up in the past three tournaments. They enter this year’s tournament at No. 4, just missing out on the first-round bye. The Eagles are the 7th highest scoring offense in the country led by senior attacker and Tewaaraton finalist Charlotte North. Their three losses have come at the hands of North Carolina in a lopsided 21-9 defeat and twice against Syracuse, most recently in the ACC Semifinal. They’ve also had notable wins against No. 7 Duke and No. 5 Notre Dame. 
• No. 3 Syracuse (14-3) is led by three Tewaaraton Award finalists in Megan Carney, Sarah Cooper and Meaghan Tyrrell. The Orange earned an at-large bid to the tournament following a loss to UNC in the ACC Championship game. Other notable losses include a regular-season loss to UNC and a close one against No. 4 Boston College. 

Full list of qualifiers:

Automatic Qualifiers (Conference Winners)

• No. 6 Florida (16-2) – American Athletic Conference
• No. 8 Stony Brook (14-2) – America East
• Massachusetts (15-2) – Atlantic 10
• No. 1 North Carolina (18-0) – ACC
• Jacksonville (11-1) – ASUN
• Denver (15-1) – Big East
• High Point (10-7) – Big South
• No. 2 Northwestern (13-0) – Big Ten
• James Madison (11-4) – Colonial
• Fairfield (13-1) – MAAC
• Robert Morris* (14-2) – MAC
• Mount St. Mary’s (14-2) – Northeast
• Stanford (11-0) – Pac-12
• Loyola Maryland (11-2) – Patriot
• Mercer (7-7) – SoCon

Teams Selected At-Large

• No. 4 Boston College (13-3)
• Drexel (13-2)*
• No. 7 Duke (9-7)
• Hofstra (6-6)
• Johns Hopkins (8-6)
• Maryland (9-6)
• No. 5 Notre Dame (9-6)
• Rutgers (6-8)
• No. 3 Syracuse (14-3)
• Temple (12-5)
• Towson (9-8)
• UConn (12-6)
• Vanderbilt (12-6)
• Virginia (8-8)

*Marks first tournament appearance

Notable: The NCAA Division II Women’s Lacrosse Tournament has been in the headlines lately as the LeMoyne women, who were ranked in the top three all year, were left out of the tournament. Even worse? The bracket was leaked early.

US runner Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has done it again, winning the Women's World Athlete of the Year for the second time at the 2025 World Athletics Awards on Sunday.

In a pivot from her historic 400-meter hurdles dominance, McLaughlin-Levrone chose to master its flat counterpart this year, racing to an undefeated season in the 400-meter flat event in 2025.

"For me, 2025 was a year of stepping outside of the comfort zone and pushing the bounds of what was mentally and physically possible," the four-time US Olympic gold medalist said in a Sunday press release. "I want to continue pushing boundaries in 2026."

Already a winner of the 2018 World Athletics Rising Star Award, McLaughlin-Levrone snagged her first Women's World Athlete of the Year honor in 2022 following a first-ever individual world title in her signature 400-meter hurdles.

This year, the 26-year-old claimed a second individual world trophy in record-breaking fashion, winning the 400-meter with a Championships and North American record-shattering time of 47.78 seconds — the second-fastest of all time — at September's 2025 World Championships in Tokyo.

The victory cemented her as the first athlete to claim world titles in both the 400-meter hurdles and 400-meter flat, ultimately earning her Sunday's World Athlete of the Year honor.

"The culmination of the season in Tokyo was a really special moment. I'm so thankful for everyone who supported, watched, voted, and who was there throughout this whole process," McLaughlin-Levrone added.

The  world No. 2 USWNT ended 2025 with a bang on Monday night, shutting out No. 12 Italy yet again behind first-half goals from young stars Catarina Macario and Jaedyn Shaw.

Macario's masterful 20th-minute chip shot continued a scoring tear for the 26-year-old, marking her fifth US goal in the last three matches while bringing her 2025 tally to a team-leading eight.

"[I'm] finally finding some consistency," Macario said after Monday's 2-0 win, commenting on her history of lingering knee injuries. "Considering everything that I've been through for the past three years, that is definitely the thing I'm most proud of."

Shaw then capped the match's scoring in the 41st minute, when the 21-year-old blasted a bullet from the top of the box to double the US lead.

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The USWNT officially ends 2025 with 12 wins, three losses, and zero draws, tying the team record for most home defeats in a calendar year while shaking up the player pool and honing their style of play.

"I watched the product in the last two games, and I'm like '[Italy] was a team that nearly made the [2025] Euro final,'" USWNT manager Emma Hayes said postmatch. "We've got patience, we could control the game in the right moments, we can attack in a variety of different ways…for me the pride is in all of it."

"It's what we're striving for every game," said 19-year-old midfielder Claire Hutton, one of three teenagers to start Monday's friendly. "We want to put more goals up — two isn't enough for us — but if we can end in a shutout and with a win, it puts us on the front foot going into January."

How to watch the USWNT in 2026

After a brief break, the USWNT will return to action with a pair of friendlies next month, kicking off their 2026 campaign against No. 41 Paraguay on Saturday, January 24th, before taking on a still-unknown opponent on Tuesday, January 27th.

The US's first match of 2026 will kick off at 5:30 PM ET, airing live on TNT and HBO Max.

The USWNT is eyeing another 2025 victory, with US Soccer announcing the finalists for the federation's end-of-year awards on Monday, including the five women nominated for US Soccer Female Player of the Year.

After stellar runs for both club and country, Arsenal defender Emily Fox, Portland Thorns midfielder Sam Coffey, Gotham FC midfielder Rose Lavelle, and Chelsea FC forwards Alyssa Thompson and Catarina Macario headline the 2025 shortlist.

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The youth national teams' Young Female Player of the Year award also tapped top finalists in Angel City forward Riley Tiernan, Chicago Stars forward Micayla Johnson, Seattle Reign defender Jordyn Bugg, Gotham FC defender Lilly Reale, and University of Virginia freshman defender Pearl Cecil.

The USWNT also earned a Game of the Year nomination, with US Soccer recognizing the team's dominant 3-0 victory over North American rival Canada in July.

While national team play is paramount in determining the honorees, club performances also factor into the awards, with several Player of the Year nominees significantly adding to their resumes away from the international pitch in 2025.

In May, Fox helped Arsenal to the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League title and Macario lifted the WSL trophy with Chelsea, while Gotham stars Lavelle and Reale finished their NWSL season as league champions late last month — with Reale also taking home the 2025 NWSL Rookie of the Year trophy.

How to vote for the 2025 US Soccer Player of the Year Awards

Players, coaches, media, the US Soccer board, and fans will determine the ultimate winners, with fan picks making up 15% of the final tally.

Fans can submit their votes online now through Friday, December 12th, with US Soccer slated to announce the winners in January.

Monday's AP Top 25 women's college basketball poll has a new No. 2, as Texas jumped two spots up the ladder after taking down then-No. 2 South Carolina and then-No. 3 UCLA at last week's Players Era Championship in Las Vegas.

With the Longhorns knocking off two Top 3 programs in the shortest time frame in 25 years, the 32-member media panel rewarded Texas with 10 first-place votes on Monday.

Despite their losses, the No. 3 Gamecocks and No. 4 Bruins fell just one spot each, with UCLA bouncing back against then-No. 14 Tennessee on Sunday — a 99-77 victory that sent the Vols tumbling five spots to No. 19 in the week's biggest rankings drop.

Meanwhile, Nos. 5 through 10 held steady this week, as No. 5 LSU, No. 6 Michigan, No. 7 Maryland, No. 8 TCU, No. 9 Oklahoma, and No. 10 Iowa State all managed to avoid upsets.

The Big Ten and SEC are now neck-and-neck atop NCAA basketball, with both conferences featuring eight Top 25 teams after a narrow win over No. 25 West Virginia last Wednesday saw No. 23 Ohio State enter the AP Poll for the first time this season.

How to watch Top 25 NCAA basketball this week

The ranked action will continue with a trio of Top 25 matchups on the second day of the annual ACC/SEC Challenge on Thursday.

First at 7 PM ET, No. 11 UNC will visit No. 2 Texas on ESPN2 while No. 3 South Carolina faces No. 22 Louisville on ESPN.

No. 18 Notre Dame will close out the night against No. 13 Ole Miss at 9 PM ET, airing live on ESPN2.

2025/26 AP Top 25 Women’s College Basketball Poll: Week 5

1. UConn (7-0, Big East)
2. Texas (8-0, SEC)
3. South Carolina (7-1, SEC)
4. UCLA (8-1, Big Ten)
5. LSU (8-0, SEC)
6. Michigan (6-1, Big Ten)
7. Maryland (9-0, Big Ten)
8. TCU (8-0, Big 12)
9. Oklahoma (7-1, SEC)
10. Iowa State (9-0, Big 12)
11. UNC (8-1, ACC)
12. Iowa (8-0, Big Ten)
13. Ole Miss (7-0, SEC)
14. Baylor (7-1, Big 12)
15. Vanderbilt (8-0, SEC)
16. USC (5-2, Big Ten)
17. Kentucky (8-1, SEC)
18. Notre Dame (5-1, ACC)
19. Tennessee (5-2, SEC)
20. Michigan State (8-0, Big Ten)
21. Washington (8-0, Big Ten)
22. Louisville (7-2, ACC)
23. Ohio State (6-1, Big Ten)
24. Oklahoma State (8-1, Big 12)
25. West Virginia (6-2, Big 12)